


Little Inconvenience Store

by booqwu



Series: jaekyuniverse [1]
Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-18
Updated: 2019-03-18
Packaged: 2019-11-23 08:06:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18149282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/booqwu/pseuds/booqwu
Summary: What the hell is he doing? Changmin thought as he scanned a pack of Mentos, a condom, and a 2 liter of Diet Coke.





	Little Inconvenience Store

Throughout his entire 19 years of living, Changmin has never learned more about the human race more than at his part time job in his distant cousin’s store. Despite only being there three days a week, Changmin can for sure say he’s learned more about the in and outs of people than he ever learned in Psych 101.  

 

Case in point, Lee Jaehyun. 

 

The Lees were a well known family throughout the tiny town that Changmin lived in. Consisting of three sons, each of them had a niche they excelled in - the oldest, Sangyeon, was student body president and going to school to be a lawyer. Juyeon, the youngest, was a star athlete in basketball and baseball, signing with the local college for a sports scholarship. Jaehyun’s specialty was drama - getting leads in musicals, solos in choir - you name it, and he’s probably starred in it. Anything this holy trinity did was spread around the town folk like hot coals, so it was quite bizarre to see Lee Jaehyun entering the convenience store around 3 a.m on one of Changmin’s graveyard shifts. 

 

Changmin watched the boy curiously, studying the bags that were under his eyes(that really you could only see if you squinted), messy hair, and clothes that look like he put them on in complete darkness. This was the complete opposite from what he saw at school - suave, charming, almost puppet like, in a way. Changmin could always tell facades when he saw one. 

 

He was jolted out of his thoughts by the person he was creepily staring at placing items on the counter in front of him. Changmin shook his head lightly to clear his thoughts as he looked down at the items, ready to scan them. 

 

_ What the hell is he doing? _ Changmin thought as he scanned a pack of Mentos, a condom, and a 2 liter of Diet Coke. He shot a confused glance at Jaehyun, who just happened to be watching him at that exact moment. Jaehyun flushed, clearing his throat and shoving his hands in his ratty hoodie pocket.

 

“Isn’t there a no judge policy on what a customer buys or something?” Jaehyun asked, looking away. Changmin shrugged, placing the plastic bag of contents onto the counter next to them.

 

“I wouldn’t say I’m judging, per say. More so, I’m curious,” Changmin responded, ringing up the whopping total of 5000 won. “All the situations I can possibly think of where you need to buy these three things at the exact same time aren’t exactly the most dull ones.”

 

“Don’t get any funny ideas,” Jaehyun said, handing Changmin the money. “It’s for my younger brother’s science project. Dumb bastard procrastinated it hard and looked this experiment up on Pinterest.”

 

Changmin snorted, placing the cash in the drawer and dropping the change in his hand. “Sounds like a real party, huh?” Jaehyun hummed in agreement with him. He stared at Changmin for a moment, which made the other boy slightly uncomfortable. Did he have something on his face?

 

“You seem familiar. Do you go to school with me?” Jaehyun asked, not moving from his spot in front of the register. Luckily, there weren’t any customers anyway, but it didn’t make Changmin feel any less nervous. He gestured with his hand for Jaehyun to stand to the side of him. 

 

“If you’re going to interrogate me, at least let me make my income while you do,” Changmin stated, bending down and grabbing some paper towels and a squirt bottle of sanitizer. Jaehyun stared dumbfounded at him for a moment before doing what he asked and moving to the side. “Are you going to answer my question?”

 

“I do,” Changmin stated, spraying the conveyor belt and the scanner. “I’m a year below you. I’m Juyeon’s age.”

 

“How do you know my brother’s name?” Jaehyun asked, confused. Changmin gave him an exasperated look. 

 

“Who doesn’t know who you and your family are?” Changmin stated, raising an eyebrow. A thick silence fell between them until he cleared his throat, smiling softly. “Also, Juyeon’s in my class. We talk sometimes.”

 

Hyunjae flushed, rubbing the back of his neck. “How come I’ve never seen you around before?” Changmin hummed in thought, starting to wipe the almost dried sanitizer off.

 

“No clue. I’m not exactly a social butterfly by any means, so I’m not surprised Juyeon hasn’t said anything. He tends to keep out of business that he doesn’t think involves him, which I appreciate,” Changmin said, throwing the now crumpled up paper towel into the trash like he was shooting a basket. Hyunjae sighed softly, and when Changmin turned to look at the boy, he had a small smile on his face. 

 

“Sounds like Juyeon. He’s very subtle about how he cares for people,” he said, running a hand through his hair. Changmin followed the movement with his eyes, but then caught himself, coughing and blushing as he focused on trying to get a miniscule spot on the scanner he was  _ positive  _ was just stuck there. 

 

“Why are you still here talking to me? I’m on the clock you know,” Changmin said, not looking at Jaehyun. “I could be actually doing something with my time instead of talking to you.” 

 

Jaehyun looked baffled, as if he just realized that he had been talking to basically a stranger for 20 minutes straight. 

 

“Oh, right. I just...got curious, I suppose,” Jaehyun said, gathering his purchase and placing it on his wrist. Changmin raised an eyebrow and looked up at the older boy. 

 

“About what? It’s a convenience store. Not much to see here.”

 

Jaehyun opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it, deciding not to. Changmin looked at him for a moment before shrugging and going back to wiping down the counter he stayed at for 8 hours a day. “Well, I feel like it’s time for you to go. You did come to the store at 3 am, and Juyeon’s probably worried.”

 

“Juyeon?” Jaehyun looked confused, but then his eyes widened. “Shit, he’s waiting for me! I need to go! I’ll talk to you later!” He bolted out of the store doors, leaving Changmin alone with the flickering light above him and the smell of oak and mint. 

 

Changmin never found out what Jaehyun was curious about.

 

A few months passed and Jaehyun would frequently show up at Changmin’s job at very obscure hours and buy very obscure things, just to see the way Changmin reacted. It wasn’t much of a big one - you see enough of this shit you kind of just expect it at this point - but it was still more entertaining than just sitting there. Soon enough, Changmin started to look forward to Jaehyun’s random night visits. 

 

“Okay,” Jaehyun said at the most recent visit, slamming down a banana, a pack of razors, and shaving cream. Changmin blinked for a moment, then hummed, scanning the items. 

 

“Opening up a banana barber shop I see,” he said, placing all these items in the same plastic bag he’s been placing all of Jaehyun’s strange combinations. “Their 5 o'clock shadow is getting a bit ripe, I suppose.” 

 

Changmin was surprised to hear Jaehyun burst into laughter, covering his smile with his mouth. He looked up at Jaehyun with wide eyes. He hasn’t really full blown laughed at something Changmin’s said, more like chuckles, and sniggers. Changmin didn’t know what to do with this information or how to feel about the warmth creeping up in his chest. 

 

“Did you just make a pun?” Jaehyun wheezed, slamming the countertop, making Changmin jump at the unexpected noise. He chuckled quietly and nodded, handing back the change to Jaehyun. 

 

“I tend to make a lot of puns,” Changmin stated, resting his elbows on the counter and placing his chin in his hands, relaxing his head. “It’s kind of a thing I do now. Pretty sure I got it from my dumb cousin.”

 

“Puns are one of my favorite things ever,” Jaehyun said laughing, leaning down so he was face to face with Changmin. “You really surprised me there.”

 

“Why do you sound so defeated? Is it that much of an inconvenience to make you laugh?” Changmin joked, studying Jaehyun’s face. They caught each other’s gaze and then held it, seeing who would back down first. Changmin started to feel a bit hot under the collar until Jaehyun broke it, grabbing the bag of miscellaneous stuff. 

 

“None at all. I honestly think you’re the least of my inconveniences,” Jaehyun said, sighing heavily. The air turned more sober now, Changmin noticed. Jaehyun’s eyes seem to lose the golden warmth they had in them and turned into a murky brown. Changmin cocked his head, confused. 

 

“What’s been inconveniencing you?” He asked carefully, not wanting to tread on Jaehyun’s privacy. They have been talking, yes, but Changmin didn’t feel as if he could spill his life story to him. Jaehyun bit his lip, debating on telling the smaller boy behind the counter. 

  
“I know it seems like my life is very put together,” Jaehyun started, pressing his back against the counter and leaning back. Changmin stared at the flannel he wore, wanting to touch the soft material to give him some sort of comfort, but not wanting to overstep. 

 

“My family doesn’t really approve of the whole theatre thing. They want me to be like Sangyeon hyung and Juyeon with academics and athletics, but I just never felt I belonged in them,” Jaehyun stated. “The arts is where I found my niche. I feel like it’s something I can be proud of doing. Sure, my parents come to shows and stuff like that, but I know they’d prefer me to do something more stable.” 

 

Changmin hummed, running a hand through his hair. He understood not doing something that parents approved of - despite every threat his parents gave him, Changmin still pursued dance. Look where that got him. 

 

“Well, if you want to pursue acting and singing, then I say go for it,” Changmin stated, leaning forward so Jaehyun could hear him. “Your parents don’t dictate your life. I’m kind of a hypocrite for saying this, but you should put your happiness before other people’s approval. Your life would be a lot happier, you know. You’re good at it too. I’ve seen you at performances - you really do shine on stage.”

 

“You’ve come to watch me?” Jaehyun teased, the glint back in his eyes now. Changmin blushed bright red, shoving Jaehyun off the counter and throwing off his balance. 

 

“Not for you. I wasn’t even friends with you then, so how could I have gone to see you?” Changmin huffed, crossing his arms. Jaehyun stared at him, a fond little smile on his face. Changmin blinked, feeling a bit uncomfortable under the gaze of the other. This seemed to be becoming a trend.

 

“Friends, huh?” Jaehyun said thoughtfully, shifting his weight onto one foot. Changmin shrugged, bending down to grab the sanitizer bottle and paper towels. 

 

“Yeah. If you don’t want to be associated with me, whatever, but I’m not the one coming into my store at weird hours and trying to get me to write a novel about the shit you buy,” Changmin teased, standing back up. Jaehyun spluttered, thrown off by the tone he used. 

 

“N-No! Of course I want to be friends, don’t take it the wrong way!” He said, waving his hands around wildly. Changmin burst into laughter, throwing his head back with a bright smile. 

 

“You’re funny. I’m just teasing you, hyung,” Changmin said, going to scrub the counter. Jaehyun blinked, confused, but then laughed quietly, leaning back to where he was before Changmin shoved him.

 

“Yeah,” he said, then paused. “Do you want to go on a date sometime?”

 

Changmin screeched and dropped the bottle, not expecting that to come out of Jaehyun’s mouth. He covered his mouth, embarrassed and blinked rapidly, rushing to pick the bottle up. His hands were shaking, and Jaehyun’s mouth was open in startled shock.

 

“I’ve never heard anyone scream like that in my life,” Jaehyun stated, laughing a little. “Was that the decibel of a gunshot? You could put the girl leads in my shows to shame.”

 

“A-Are you sure you’re not asking the wrong person?” Changmin rushed to change the subject, lightly slapping his quickly blushing cheeks. Jaehyun huffed, and reached up to ruffle the dyed light brown locks on Changmin’s head. 

 

“Not at all. You know, these past few months have got me really thinking. I didn’t realize the term ‘convenience store’ would have such an impactful title,” Jaehyun started, looking around the store with a smile. “A convenient place to get away from my inconveniences. A convenient  _ person _ that helps me get away from my inconveniences.” He grinned at Changmin, causing the boy’s heart to throb in a really strange way. “So, what do you say?”

 

Changmin could see it now: all of Jaehyun’s admirers (and he has a lot) coming to teepee his house as he slept. He could almost smell the spray paint that would be on his locker the next day, with glaring insults that, a few years ago, would’ve hurt him. Now though, staring at an extremely cute boy’s smile, especially a cute boy who wants to take him out on a date and possibly more, he can truly say:  _ Time to get high on the fumes. _

 

Changmin blinked and sighed, shaking his head. “Who could say no to Lee Jaehyun? Especially when he smiles at me like that?” Jaehyun’s expression looked like that of an excited puppy, with his cheeks rising up to form the squishiest smile. Changmin laughed, reaching up to grab at them lightly.

 

“See you at the same time tomorrow? I know a 24 hour cafe.”

 

“You’re on, Ji Changmin.”

**Author's Note:**

> so this was actually a short story i sent in for an assignment (without changmin and hyunjae's names of course, i made my own characters) but this idea i originally had for a jaekyu plot. so i just switched the names, edited it a bit, and viola. here we are! 
> 
> jaekyu needs more stories too i know like three (3) people who write for jaekyu and im one of them LMAOOOO
> 
> ne ways follow me on twitter @chngmic


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